The BCG Bang Duong Energy JSC, a subsidiary of the Bamboo Capital Group (BCG), signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) on October 29 with the Electricity Power Trading Company (EPTC), a subsidiary of Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), for its 40 MW solar farm project in the Mekong Delta’s Long An province.

The project is wholly owned by BCG Bang Duong Energy, with total investment of $42 million. EPTC has been assigned as the sole off-taker and distributor of electricity in Vietnam.

According to Decision No. 11/2017/QD-TTg in 2017, the uniform feed-in tariff will be $0.0935 per kWh and applied for 20 years to projects reaching commercial operations before June 30 next year.

BCG Bang Duong Energy held a breaking ground ceremony in September for the 40 MW solar farm in Thanh Hoa district. The project has been approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and has a total capacity of 40.6 MW on a total area of 50.2 ha. The Commercial Operation Date (COD) is expected to be in early June 2019 and, once completed, the project targets generating 60 million kWh per year.

Aside from this project, BCG is also launching other two solar farms in Long An - the 100 MW GAIA and the 50 MW Sunflower - with a total capacity of 150 MW. It also plans to expand its pipeline into the central Quang Nam province with two floating solar projects on Phu Ninh and Khe Tan Lakes with a total capacity of up to 400 MW.

Together with infrastructure and real estate, renewable energy is one of BCG’s three key pillars.

Meanwhile, the TTC Group and its member company, the Gia Lai Electricity JSC (GEC), inaugurated the TTC Phong Dien Solar Power Plant in Phong Dien district, central Thua Thien Hue province, in early October, the first 35 MW solar power plant to be put into operation in Vietnam.

“Government incentives are a key element in developing solar power projects, as investors need to know the terms of power purchase agreements and the tariff rate,” an advisor from a leading Thai energy firm told VET recently. “Return on investment in power projects is normally below 10 per cent but provides firm revenue on a long-term basis, so this will be a new opportunity for local enterprises to participate in the government’s infrastructure development program.”